Rangers supporters group calls for newco club to start in Division Three

STV
9 July 2012 09:48 BST

Rangers fans: The supporters trust claims the newco should start in Division Three.SNS Group

A Rangers supporters group has called for the newco club to be sent to Division Three.

The Rangers Supporters Trust stated that the club owned by the Sevco Scotland consortium should be made to start life in the bottom tier of the Scottish Football League (SFL).

On Friday, SFL clubs will vote on whether to accept a newco Rangers into the league and they will also decide whether they can play in the First or Third Division.

Last week Scottish Premier League clubs voted against allowing the new company to take over Rangers FC plc’s membership share, leaving them to apply to the SFL to play.

Both Scottish FA chief executive Stewart Regan and SPL chief executive Neil Doncaster have claimed the financial implications of making newco Rangers start in the Third Division would be disastrous. They are pushing for the club to be allowed to enter the First Division at the start of the season which begins next month.

In a statement released on its website, the trust said: "The Rangers fans have made it very clear that we wish the club to resume playing in Division Three.

"This has been communicated to both the board and the manager of our club and they are entirely supportive. This is the correct solution and one which means the club will forever be beyond reproach. The tactics being employed by the SPL and SFA in order to deny Rangers the opportunity to do so are outrageous."

The statement was in response to one from the Hibernian Supporters Club that claimed newco Rangers should be forced to work from the bottom of the SFL.

The Rangers group claimed the Division One proposal is "being cobbled together for the benefit of clubs in the SPL" as many have business models dependent on the Ibrox club being in the league.

In response to the prospect of the SFL clubs voting newco Rangers into the Third Division, the footballing authorities have threatened to create an SPL 2, which could harm many Scottish clubs outside the premier league.

The trust added: "We look forward to being given the opportunity to make new friends in our journey through the Scottish leagues, starting in Division 3. We are sure this journey will benefit the clubs in those leagues and look forward to returning to a prosperous SPL with bountiful 'sporting integrity'. If we are denied this opportunity then rival clubs should look no further than their own chairman for someone to blame."

Previously Rangers manager Ally McCoist said he agreed with the club's fans that starting in Division Three would be the right way forward.

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